Miscellaneous - Religion   

Secret of incarnation

CHENNAI : Quite often, spiritual leaders are confronted with this question during their interactions with laypeople: "Is this not the right time for God to incarnate in the world as there is so much Adharma (unrighteousness)?" This doubt is the result of the assurance of Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita, "Whenever there is decline of Dharma and ascendance of Adharma, then I manifest."

In his discourse, Swami Mitrananda said the situation now in the world had not deteriorated enough to warrant God's incarnation. The atmosphere is still conducive for an earnest spiritual seeker to pursue the goal of liberation. The decadence we perceive in society is of our own making which can be set right if the collective will is there. There is no need to worry as divine incarnation in the world is inbuilt in the cosmic scheme and will happen whenever necessary. The Lord has clarified that His descents are necessary for the protection of the virtuous and in the process the evildoers are destroyed as they pose a threat to Dharma. Righteousness is intrinsic to the functioning of the universe.

The Almighty manifests in every age according to the requirements of the time but the ignorant ones do not recognise His divine nature. This can be appreciated from the episode in the Mahabharata describing how Arjuna and Duryodana sought Krishna's help when a war between them seemed imminent. When they reached Krishna's mansion in Dwaraka, He was sleeping and so they waited, Arjuna near His feet and Duryodana seated near the head of the cot. When He woke up Krishna naturally saw Arjuna first. When they expressed the purpose of their visit He asked Arjuna to choose first declaring that He would not wield weapons in the war. So it came to pass that Arjuna chose the Lord and Duryodana Krishna's army.

When Duryodana jubilantly broke this news to his uncle Shakuni, he immediately chastised him for his folly by pointing out that without Krishna His army would not be motivated to fight and besides would not fight against Him. Hence they could not hope to win. Arjuna, on the other hand, had chosen wisely and had declared when Krishna teased him about his choice, "We have You. Where there is Dharma, there is victory; and where Krishna is, there is Dharma."

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